Operators of an industrial process normally utilize display screens which present important process parameters for the operator. The process parameters may typically be controlled via an operator panel.
Generally, operators monitoring the industrial process occasionally will need to move away from the display screen in order to carry out other duties involved in their daily work. However, even when having moved away from a display screen, the operators will still need to have knowledge about the parameters of the process in order to be able to ensure control of the process.
US 2007/0093937 discloses an operator control panel having a replaceable default screen. The operator control panel is configured to have a thumb tack function which allows the user to select a desired status screen from screen display that is available in a menu structure. Operational screens are selected, such as by switching the state of the graphical thumb tack. If selected, the operational screen is displayed during a period of inactivity instead of the default screen. An operational screen is a view of the user interface that is selected for the purpose of being displayed during a period of inactivity so that status can quickly be ascertained without additional user interaction with the user interface.
However, for the purposes of industrial processes and automation, there exist drawbacks with the control panel disclosed in US 2007/0093937.